Looking for a mind-blowing, captivating and enthralling festival this summer? In Edinburgh, you’re spoilt for choice! From music, theatre and dance, to art, books and film, however you like your entertainment you’re sure to find it here.
Take a look at our roundup of what you can expect at this year’s seven summer festivals and clear a space in your diary – there’s lots going on!
Edinburgh International Festival
unique collaborations, world premieres and critically acclaimed productions.
Featuring world premieres, retellings of classic works and critically acclaimed productions in the fields of music, theatre, opera and dance, Edinburgh International Festival is a true celebration of the performing arts.
Since its establishment in 1947 when it sought to encourage the ‘flowering of the human spirit’ in post-war Scotland, it has continued to capture and showcase artistic creativity. And 2025’s programme looks set to continue this aim.
After 2024 Festival’s theme: Rituals That Unite Us, the 2025 Festival explores the theme The Truth We Seek. The programme of live entertainment celebrates the practices, traditions and festivities that give us meaning and connect us.
Running over 24 days and featuring 161 performances from over 2000 artists across 42 nations, highlights from this year’s programme include Make It Happen, a satirical play from one of Britiain’s most in-demand playrights, James Graham, the powerful dance performers, Dance People, and the show that fuses opera with puppetry, Book of Mountains and Seas.
The Edinburgh International Festival runs from 01 to 24 August 2025.
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
spotting up-and-coming artists, as well as well-known names.
Spanning theatre, dance, circus, physical theatre, comedy, music, musicals, opera, cabaret, variety, children’s shows, spoken word, exhibitions and events, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is a cornucopia of entertainment.
The concept of the Fringe is simple – it is open to anyone with a story to tell and a venue willing to host them. And with 3,317 shows to choose from, taking place in 262 venues across the city, it’s not difficult to see why this is the largest arts festival in the world.
The Fringe is also a hotspot for talented street-performers. Music, magic, circus and sideshows – you’ll see them all here. The Fringe street events take place in their usual home of the High Street and the Mound.
Be part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 01 to 25 August 2025.
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
music, dance, culture, and military traditions against a stunning background.
Set against the backdrop of Edinburgh’s impressive castle, The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo is one of the most special events in Edinburgh’s calendar.
From humble beginnings in 1950, it now attracts local and international audiences and a dazzling display of over 800 UK and international performers. Massed pipe bands, precision drilling, dancing and stunning imagery will transform the Castle’s esplanade into a scene of wonder.
Celebrating their 75th Anniversary show, the theme of this year’s programme is The Heros Who Made Us. Performers from USA, India, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, alongside homegrown acts from around the UK, will celebrate the journey of connection through music, dance, culture, and military traditions.
See the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo between 01 and 23 August 2025.
Edinburgh Art Festival
meaningful art exhibitions, events and projects.
Founded in 2004, Edinburgh Art Festival is the UK’s largest annual festival of visual art. Each year it brings together the capital’s leading galleries and museums to present an ambitious and meaningful programme of exhibitions, events and projects.
The festival connects with historic and contemporary ways of organising that have built infrastructures of care and pioneering activist movements, this year’s programme of events is sure to impress. Spanning the work of more than 200 artists, and taking place all across the city, it will ask viewers to look again at Edinburgh through the eyes of the exhibiting artists.
Across the city, audiences will be able to experience a range of performances including A kind of glamour about me, by a pioneering feminist artist, Linder, Lewis Walker’s Bornsick – which reflects the idea that we inherit illness, born into a system that shapes us before we can define ourselves, and many more.
Experience Edinburgh Art Festival from 07 to 24 August 2025.
Edinburgh International Book Festival
discovering both prize-winning and emerging writers.
Celebrating the written word, literature and ideas, this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival includes over 500 events for adults and children. Authors, writers, campaigners and politicians from over 40 countries will be taking to stages to share stories, ideas and views.
Repair is the Book Festival’s core theme for 2025, seeking to explore the many things around us which feel broken, and how we might seek to fix them – from the physical to the political, the emotional to the environmental, and beyond.
The lineup ranges from Yellowface author R F Kuang, who appears as part of the festival’s newly programmed Young Adults strand, which directly responds to topics of social and cultural importance often driven by the digital landscape, to firm festival favourites Denise Mina, Chris Brookmyre, V E Schwab, and Ali Smith, there is something for every audience to enjoy.
Explore Edinburgh International Book Festival between 09 and 24 August 2025.
Edinburgh International Film Festival
showcasing the most exciting and innovative new film talent.
Exploring new concepts and innovative approaches in cinema, the Edinburgh International Film Festival features short films, experimental cinema and documentary films across a range of genres.
The hand-picked selection programme will see film lovers treated to a variety of films from renowned film makers, as well as showcasing the work of a new generation of UK and international talent.
The 2025 edition – it’s 78th anniversary – takes place over seven days and will showcase the very best talent in filmmaking in its re-energised format that is rooted in a local Scottish context whilst embracing the international diversity of creative expression.
Film goers are able to experience new work from filmmakers from across the world, with screenings shown at a variety of venues in the city, including Cameo Cinema, Summerhall and Tollcross Central Hall. A number of performances are available as audio described and subtitled screenings.
Watch the Edinburgh International Film Festival between 14 and 20 August 2025.
Please note, Edinburgh will be busier than usual during the Festivals. Plan ahead to avoid delays from planned road closures. We recommend walking or using public transport, such as Lothian Buses or Edinburgh Trams.
Looking for more things to see and do in Edinburgh this summer?
From theatre performances and workshops, to exhibitions and events, there’s lots going on in Edinburgh.
